Genus Aphonopelma

[Dev]

well heres my happy seemani

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[rubenphobia]

My A.seemanni "blue" male subadult

A.seemanni male adult

mating

 

[Gigas]

I never knew the males looked like that!, very Pamphobeteus -esque

 

[Gwegowee]

:? I don't see the pics...

no???? everything seems to work for me... ???

 

[maarrrrr]

nice pictures

 

[Tegenaria]

My A.seemanni "blue" male subadult

That is just one stunningly beautiful Tarantula! And I bet theyre not for beginners too

 

[pitbulllady]

That is just one stunningly beautiful Tarantula! And I bet theyre not for beginners too

Actually, A. seemani IS one of the species most-recommended as "beginners' tarantulas". They are very rugged and durable as T's go, and are easy to obtain, at least in the US, where I often find adults(including my own blue-phased female)for sale for as little as $5.00. I would not consider them to be a "handleable" species, generally speaking, though. All that I've ever seen have been nervous and skittish and all-too-quick to throw a theat display.

pitbulllady

 

[Tegenaria]

Hmmm,you got me thinking now pitbullady...;-) (took me ages to get here as I'm using my phone!)

 

[GQ.]

I took a little walk yesterday and found this girl still had an open burrow. I poured a tiny bit of water on her to get her to come to the entrance. I teased her the rest of the way out by tickling her rump. (My signature move. ) She promptly came out and did a U-turn. She had a huge rump akin to a well fed captive. I was too slow to photograph her before she headed back inside. I've been keeping an eye on this burrow since 2002. I can't say it is the same female, but there is a good chance it is. Below is a photo of her at her burrow entrance

I stopped by for another look today and she had sealed up her burrow. This might be sealed up for the year, but I can't say for sure. The nights are cooling off quite a bit, but today it was 87 degrees!

I noticed this little packet of bones outside her entrance. This little bundle of bones is less than half the diameter of a dime. It may be a lizard of the Uta or Sceloporous genus. Unfortunately I couldn't find the skull or I'd have sent the whole thing to lucanidae for reconstruction.

 

[rex_arachne]

cool pics.

 

[pinkzebra]

Great pics! I'd love to be able to go looking for/studying Ts in their natural environment! It would be interesting to know what those bones are from too. Thanks for sharing!

 

[GQ.]

Thank you! I still feel like a little kid every time I see a tarantula in the wild. I'm lucky to live in the midst of them.

 

[Crotalus]

Thanks for posting! Is it eutylenum or something like that (too lazy to check) ?
And a interesting find, them bones.

/Lelle

 

[GQ.]

Lelle,

I talked to a few people when I first started finding these. The consensus back then is that it was a problematic species. It had been named Aphonopelma 'eutylenum type'. I know color isn't a species determining characteristic, but they look quite a bit different than Aphonopelma eutylenum. A. eutylenum are typically a uniform rich dark chocolate color. A. 'eutylenum type' has more of a three tone coloration. The legs are brown, the carapace is a light tan coloration, and their rump is a darker brown with reddish orange setae. They are truly beautiful after a fresh molt. I don't know of any work that has formally described them.

-Gilbert

 

[Tegenaria]

Fantastic to be able to see thse in the wild, so lucky!
BTW, what are the red/brown objects near the bones?Also one at bottom of the pic.

 

[lucanidae]

Unfortunately I couldn't find the skull or I'd have sent the whole thing to lucanidae for reconstruction.

Thanks! Haha, I would have loved too!

I think it's cool that the spider chomped that vertebrate.

 

[GQ.]

BTW, what are the red/brown objects near the bones?Also one at bottom of the pic.

Those are old sun bleached beetle shells. The newer shells are the typical black of a tenebrionid beetle. The area around their burrows are usually littered with them.

The dirt mound around their burrows are also usually full of old exuvia. Numerous white flecks of dried fecal matter round out the typical burrow debris. I have also found the remains of Anuroctonus pococki scorpions and Bothriocyrtum californicum (California trapdoor spider) mixed in with the other detritus. I once found the remains of a male Aphonopelma in the debris pile at a female's burrow. It was easily identifiable by the tibial spur on one leg.

 

[GQ.]

Thanks! Haha, I would have loved too!

You just may get a box of micro bones if I ever see a skull in with the mix. I hope you have good eyes.

 

[Tegenaria]

Those are old sun bleached beetle shells. The newer shells are the typical black of a tenebrionid beetle. The area around their burrows are usually littered with them.

I have also found the remains of Anuroctonus pococki scorpions and Bothriocyrtum californicum (California trapdoor spider) mixed in with the other detritus. I once found the remains of a male Aphonopelma in the debris pile at a female's burrow. It was easily identifiable by the tibial spur on one leg.

Very cool!

 

[Urbanspider]

Aphonopelma sp. New Mexico

Male Aphonopelma sp. found crossing the road in Sierra County, NM.
Rather cranky speciman. He was almost standing on two legs!
My, what big fangs you have!